A spot of their own

A motorcycle parked between cars on August 29, 2013. According to Los Rios Police Department policy, "Motorcycles may not park in regular vehicle spaces." ARC has motorcycle parking in lots A, C and G. (Photo by Alex Panasenko)

This story was written by Ed Gebing and Jessica Maynard. Due to the limitations of our platform, it is published multiple times under a joint, and two individual bylines.

You’re running late for your 9 a.m. class when you find what you believe to be an empty parking spot, but, when you go to turn in you slam on your brakes quickly only to find a motorcycle parked in the space.

Searching for a parking spot can be a tedious task the first few weeks of school and let’s face it the parking structure isn’t very inviting when the majority of students drive like they’re on the last lap of the Daytona 500. The false hope given to a student who is running late for class when they find a motorcycle in a car parking spot is equivalent to the day you found out Santa Clause wasn’t real.

American River College student Ana Franco has encountered this issue before.

“It bothers me because when you’re trying to look for a parking spot and they’re taken [by a motorcycle] and then you’re late for class, it’s frustrating,” Franco said.

The areas designated for motorcyclists to park their bikes are not heavily publicized throughout the campus, ARC motorcyclist Shane McGuire only found out about the parking spots through a friend.

“The only reason why I know they [the spots] were there is because I found them out through my friend who was parking in the chemistry area,” McGuire said. “The designated areas are good, sometimes you wish they were a bit more logically placed.”

Riders, designated motorcycle parking areas on campus are your friends. Every parking lot on campus has areas set up for you to park your bike; and the positive side of parking in these areas are that the majority of these spaces are closer to your classes than the actual spots you’re taking up.

Campus police have also noticed these incidents occurring across the campus.

“We can write a citation for parking out of a designated area, that is a 33 dollar fine, it’s generally a warning [the first time] but it depends on the officer’s discretion,” ARC campus police officer Chris Brown said. “At the beginning of the school year we see this quite a few times but after the first few weeks they [motorcycles] generally end up where they are supposed to go.”

Some students feel stronger than others when it comes to their parking spaces being taken by bikes.

Motorcyclist just remember next time you try and take a parking spot that you have designated areas around campus to park your motorcycles and always remain courteous to your fellow student drivers by parking in these allotted spaces or you will be subject to a fine.